Putin hails progress in Syria during Moscow talks with al Sharaa
Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa arrives in Moscow on his second trip in four months.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday congratulated his Syrian counterpart, Ahmed al Sharaa, on the progress made in restoring Syria’s territorial integrity.
Opening a meeting in Moscow with al Sharaa, who is making his second visit to Russia in four months, Putin expressed his support for the Syrian leader.
"We have been monitoring closely your efforts to restore the territorial integrity of Syria, and I would like to congratulate you on the fact that this process is gaining momentum. We have always stood for restoring the territorial integrity of Syria, as you are aware, and we support your efforts in this very regard," Putin said.
Putin particularly praised the advancement of the Syrian army in the Euphrates region, saying integration of this area is "critical" for the restoration of Syria.
"I hope that the integration of the Euphrates region is, without a doubt, a crucial step in this direction and that it will contribute to the restoration of Syria's territorial integrity as a whole," he said.
Historic Russia-Syria ties
Putin also noted that thanks to the efforts of both governments, economic cooperation “moved from the dead point” and grew by some 4 percent recently.
"This may not be as ambitious as we would like, but it is notable. And we have to do everything to preserve this good trend," he added.
Putin highlighted the depth of Russia-Syria ties, noting that diplomatic relations were established in 1944, a difficult time for Russia, which was then fighting Nazi Germany in World War II.
"Now, in the new realities, thanks in part and above all to your efforts, relations between Syria and Russia are developing," he said.
He also mentioned that a large interdepartmental delegation from the Russian government recently visited Damascus and worked actively with Syrian counterparts.
"I know that much will need to be restored in Syria, and our economic operators, including those in the construction sector, are ready for this joint work," he said.
Region in need of stabilisation
For his part, Syrian leader al Sharaa noted that Russia and Syria have exchanged 13 delegations since December.
"We have many topics that we can work on and discuss, and I hope that we will discuss them in detail during our meeting and that it will be fruitful," he said.
Al Sharaa added that Syria came a long way over the past year, overcame the sanctions phase, and that its major goal now is restoring territorial integrity.
"The major challenge is the reunification of Syrian territory. We've been working on this issue since last year. Russia, of course, plays a major role in Syria, in stabilising the situation not only in Syria but also in the region," he said.
The Syrian leader emphasised that the Middle East "is in dire need of stabilisation," adding, "Therefore, thank you very much, Mr President, for your efforts in this matter."
The Syrian president said that seeing heavy snow on the way from the airport to the Kremlin reminded him of historical attacks on Moscow, which were repelled by the people's resilience—and the weather.
"I remembered that historically there have been many military operations, attempts to reach Moscow, but the people's resilience and the weather even helped repel these attacks," he said.
Russian troops presence
Speaking at a press briefing in Moscow, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said earlier that Putin and al Sharaa will discuss the issues related to the presence of the Russian armed forces in Syria.
"I have no doubt that all issues related to the presence of our military in Syria will also be raised during today's negotiations," he said.
Cooperation between Moscow and Damascus is actively developing following the change of leadership in Syria, Peskov added.
"Relations with the Syrian Arab Republic are actively developing following the change of leadership," he said.
Commenting on media reports that claimed the Syrian authorities are allegedly negotiating with Moscow over the extradition of former Syrian leader Bashar al Assad from Russia, Peskov said: "We are not commenting on the Assad issue."
On reports that Syrian authorities had requested Russia’s withdrawal from an airfield in Qamishli, Peskov said only the Defence Ministry could address such matters.
“As for the deployment of our armed forces on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic, this is the prerogative of the Ministry of Defence. We recommend contacting them,” he said.